New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) received an $18.5-million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to reduce passenger and freight train congestion along Amtrak's Empire Corridor at the Syracuse, N.Y., train station.

The federal funds, which come from the USDOT's High-Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail Program, will be used for the final design and construction of track reconfiguration and replacement and signal system improvements. NYSDOT will contribute an additional $4.6 million to the project that includes the upgrade of two sidings or passing tracks, one of which passenger trains use to access the Syracuse station, the other used by freight trains to access the nearby freight yard. Once complete, the enhancements will remove the current 30 mph speed restrictions on the sidings. Construction is expected to begin in 2015.